On the Right to Safely Shop for Groceries

by Pa Rock

Citizen Journalist

Even if there was some uniquely American, constitutionally-sanctioned right to walk around carrying a fully-automatic weapon  - which there clearly is not - that right would still not "trump" my right to buy groceries without without constantly ducking from aisle to aisle in fear of running into some heavily-armed, deranged moron who is having a "really bad day."   There is no "right" for angry young white men to compensate for their sexual shortcomings and impotency issues by marching out into the civilized world with what is essentially a bullet-spiting, penis-extender strapped to their backsides.

In a capitalist economy, such as the one we have in this country, I not only have a "right" to shop, I am heavily encouraged to do so.    Merchants advertise and rollout special bargains to lure me into their stores.  And I comply.  I go to town, walk through the stores, and spend my money.  My father was a small town merchant, and I have an affinity for small, family-run businesses.

But hear this world, I will not shop in stores that allow those pot-bellied, Rambo-wannabes to roam the aisles carrying assault weapons.  America learned to shop at home during the pandemic, and if stores refuse to keep customers safe by banning weapons from their premises, then the trend to on-line shopping will continue to grow.  We know now that the US Postal Service, FedEx, or UPS will bring toilet paper, potato chips, or anything else that we order on-line right up to our front doors.

This past Monday evening a young man walked into a grocery store in Boulder, Colorado, carrying  fully automatic weapon.   He didn't stay long.  The man opened fire on the shoppers and killed ten - including a 51-year-old cop who was a the father of seven.  When he had either sated his bloodlust or shot all of the moving targets that he could see, the killer put down his AR-15 and allowed police to calmly take him to jail.

Poll after poll shows that a majority of the American public favors stricter gun-control legislation - as do a majority of law enforcement officials.  The public wants commonsense things like mandatory background checks on everyone buying a weapon, whether it is from a licensed gun dealer or a private individual - and they want a waiting period long enough to insure that the government has time to properly do those background checks. Most people are also opposed to the private ownership of military style assault weapons as well as to individuals being able to own high-capacity ammunition magazines.   Military assault weapons and high-capacity magazines in the hands of ordinary citizens are for show and/or for killing large numbers of human beings quickly.  They are not used for hunting squirrels, rabbits, or deer!

Every now and then Congress or some maverick state legislature shows signs of some backbone development favoring gun restrictions, but then Wayne LaPierre of the NRA puts on one of his fine Italian suits and snarls his displeasure at legislators daring to put the public interest ahead of the profits of gun manufacturers, and the legislative courage evaporates like so much fog in the sunlight.

Now, however, there are indicators that the NRA influence over legislators may be on the wane.  For one thing the lobbying group seems to have been fleeced by some of its leaders - like the one with a closet full of fine Italian suits - and the money that it once lavished on politicians is no longer available in such large amounts.  And some (a few at least) politicians are getting braver as people favoring saner gun legislation - like Mark Kelly of Arizona and Lucy McBath of Georgia - are being elected to office.  They see now that it is possible to put commonsense limits on gun ownership without committing political hari-kari. 

And then there is that wildcard "consumer" element of the equation.

Some states and some communities allow the open and/or concealed carrying of different types of firearms, but they do so a a definite risk to the public.  Sometimes businesses have a choice as to whether they allow guns on their premises or not, and sometimes they have no choice.  But consumers always have a choice of where they do their shopping, and if a consumer feels that shopping at a particular store poses a risk to their health and safety - or to the health and safety of family members - that consumer will spend his money elsewhere.

This consumer damn sure will!

I vote, and I consume, and I say whatever is on my mind!